Information Technology (“IT”) departments in enterprises, governments, and other institutions are increasingly focused on controlling endpoints in their networks. IT departments may control what software can be installed on an endpoint (e.g., only software approved by the IT department may be installed on the endpoint), what type of data can be stored on an endpoint (e.g., no personal information may be stored on the endpoint), which network an endpoint can connect to, etc. IT departments may implement these types of controls on desktops, laptops, mobile devices, and various other types of computing systems. Unfortunately, this approach to endpoint control is at odds with the trend towards consumerization of IT and is not user friendly.
As a result of the controls implemented on endpoints, many people may have two devices—one for work and one for personal use. Furthermore, some users may circumvent the controls put in place by an IT department (e.g., by storing sensitive work-related information on a personal device), leaving the institution with a false sense of security.
Some institutions may attempt to address these issues by implementing multiple virtual machines on a single device. For example, a user may be able to access a work virtual machine and a personal virtual machine on a laptop. Unfortunately, such solutions typically do not provide a seamless, unified experience for end users. For example, while working on her personal calendar a user may be unable to see her work meetings. What is needed, therefore, is a more efficient and effective mechanism for providing users with a more unified experience when accessing information from different computing environments.